JUDD TRUMP RECOVERS FROM ALMIGHTY SCARE AFTER FAILED 147 ATTEMPT TO BEAT LIU HONGYU AT ENGLISH OPEN
Judd Trump clinched victory against 20-year-old Liu Hongyu in his opening English Open tie, beating the youngster 4-3 in an exciting battle. Trump led the contest by two frames at one stage, but Hongyu forced a decider. “I struggled really, his standard wasn’t very good at the start either and it kind of put me off,” Trump told Eurosport. “I knew in the last frame to not give him anything easy.”
Judd Trump edged China’s Liu Hongyu 4-3 in a dramatic battle at the English Open in Brentwood on Monday to seal his place in the last 32 – but it wasn’t without a fright.
The world No. 1, who claimed the inaugural Saudi Arabia Masters crown last week, looked to be cruising into the next round when he took a 3-1 lead and moved to within a frame of victory.
But Trump left Hongyu in the balls after a failed 147 attempt, and the Chinese pegged him back to level the scores in a spirited performance, before the 2019 world champion did just enough to overcome his opponent and claim the victory.
Trump will play either Matthew Selt or Ricky Walden in an all-English last-32 tie for a spot in the last 16.
“It was a tricky game,” Trump told Eurosport after the match. “Whenever you’re starting in the first round of a tournament after such a high in the last tournament, it’s always difficult.
“I struggled really, his standard wasn’t very good at the start either and it kind of put me off a little bit. When I was going for the 147, he made a great clearance and came back into it.
“I knew in the last frame to not give him anything easy, and in the end, played a good last frame.”
Trump edged a patchy opening frame before the world No. 65 hit back in frame two to pull level.
Trump drilled in a 98 break in the third frame – falling just short of a century – to restore his lead in dominant fashion and lay down a marker in the third-round clash.
The top seed moved to within a frame of victory when he sealed the fourth 70-16 and was on course for a maximum break as he looked to get the job done, but fell short in his efforts when he missed a black to the bottom left pocket.
With Trump on 65, it left Hongyu with enough points on the table to close the deficit to 3-2, which he did so with a clinical break of 68 to force a sixth frame.
Trump was in danger of elimination when Hongyu pulled level once more to take the match to an exciting decider, but Trump recovered to clinch it with a break of 57 to advance.